CBSE 2025 Overhaul: Two Exams, Digital IDs, and the End of “Mugging Up”
Formfees
06/12/2025
Let’s be real for a second: for decades, the Indian board exam system has felt less like education and more like a survival sport. We’ve all been there—or watched our kids be there. The sleepless nights, the mountains of textbooks, and the terrifying reality that one bad day in March could derail your entire college trajectory.
But if you’ve been dreading the 2025-26 academic year, take a deep breath. The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) is finally hitting the reset button.
Aligned with the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020, the board is rolling out massive changes for Class 10 and 12. We aren’t just talking about a new syllabus; we are talking about a total shift from memorizing to understanding.
Here is the lowdown on the new rules, the “best of two” exams, and why “dummy schools” are in trouble.
Contents
1. Two Board Exams: A Safety Net, Not a Burden
The headline everyone is talking about is the end of the “one-shot” pressure cooker. Starting with the 2026 examinations, the traditional single annual exam is being swapped for a bi-annual system.
Here is how it works:
- Two Chances: Students can sit for board exams twice a year.
- Keep the Best: Messed up the first attempt? No problem. You can take the second one and retain the better score.
- The Timeline: According to reports on the schedule, Phase I is tentatively set for February 17 to March 10, 2026, with Phase II following from May 15 to June 1, 2026.
Think of it like the SATs or IB retakes. The goal isn’t to double the testing; it’s to acknowledge that a student’s worth shouldn’t be judged by a single three-hour window.
2. Rote Learning is Officially Out
If your study strategy involves memorizing definitions without understanding them, you might want to rethink that. The CBSE is aggressively moving toward Competency-Based Assessments.
The 50% Rule
For both Class 10 and 12, roughly 50% of the questions will now focus on conceptual understanding and critical thinking. The questions will ask you to apply knowledge to real-life scenarios, effectively rendering those “100% Guaranteed Success” guidebooks obsolete.
Furthermore, you can no longer ignore internal projects until the last week of school. Internal assessments—class participation, periodic tests, and projects—will now carry significant weight. It’s a move to ensure learning happens all year round, not just in February.
3. The “Dummy School” Crackdown
This is a big one for the coaching center crowd. The CBSE is tightening the screws on attendance to curb the culture of “dummy schools”—places where students enroll just for the certificate while attending coaching institutes all day.
- The 75% Mandate: To appear for boards, a minimum of 75% attendance is non-negotiable.
- The Consequence: Attendance is linked to internal assessments. If you don’t show up to school, you might be barred from the internal evaluation, which tanks your final grade.
4. The Digital Backpack: APAAR ID
Administrative work is getting a tech upgrade. Registration for Class 9 and 11 students for the 2025-26 session is now mandatory through the Pariksha Sangam portal.
More importantly, students now need an APAAR ID (Automated Permanent Academic Account Registry). Part of the “One Nation, One Student ID” initiative, this digital ID will track a student’s academic journey from kindergarten to PhD. (Note: Overseas CBSE schools are currently exempt from this).
5. Culture and Grading Shifts
The reforms aren’t just for teenagers.
- Mother Tongue First: Starting July 2025, schools are mandated to use the mother tongue or state language as the medium of instruction for Kindergarten through Class 2. The science says kids learn foundations better in their native language, though this will likely be a logistical challenge for English-medium schools.
- New Grading Scale: A broader 9-point grading system is replacing the old five-tier model for Classes 10 and 12, allowing colleges to differentiate between top performers more accurately.
The Bottom Line
The 2025-2026 reforms are structural, not cosmetic. By combining the flexibility of bi-annual exams with the rigor of competency-based testing, the CBSE is trying to mold well-rounded students rather than efficient test-takers.
For parents, the message is clear: The strategy of “mugging up” is dying. The era of understanding, application, and actually showing up to class is here.
